Reederei Norden-Frisia has named its new electric catamaran (E-Kat) the Frisia E-I. The E and the I (1) in the name represent the ship’s status as Germany’s first electric ocean-going ship.
From April 4, 2025, the Frisia E-I will transport up to 150 guests, eight times a day, from its Norddeich home port to the North Sea Island of Norderney and back. The journey time will be 30 minutes. Once back in Norddeich, the battery will be recharged in approximately 28 minutes and the Frisia E-I can then start its next trip to the island. With the new ship, these crossings will be completely CO2-neutral for the first time. The vessel was built by Damen Shipyard.
Sustainable infrastructure
In order to cover the calculated power consumption of the E-Kat, several projects for renewable energy generation and storage were combined. For example, Norden-Frisia equipped 600 parking spaces with photovoltaic roofs on its parking areas in Norddeich. Solar systems have also been installed on roofs and carports in Norddeich, Harlesiel, Norderney and Juist, with an open space system being implemented. In the future, battery storage will buffer surpluses from solar power generation during the day for night-time needs.
The additional costs of the electric drive of the electric catamaran were subsidized with €608,000 (US$736,000) by the NBank of the state of Lower Saxony. The charging station for the E-Kat was funded by the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport with a total of around €650,000 (US$700,000) from the BordstromTech Directive as part of the implementation of the Federal government’s Mobility and Fuels Strategy (MKS). The funding measure was coordinated by Now.
Naming ceremony
At the official ceremony, Karin Pragal, Reederei Norden-Frisia supervisory board chair, was accompanied by Dr Wibke Mellwig, Head of Waterways and Shipping at the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport; Joschka Böddeling from Damen Shipyard; and Carl-Ulfert Stegmann, a board member of Reederei Norden-Frisia.
“I am delighted to officially name this truly innovative and unique project,” said Pragal. After many months of development, construction, and testing of ship and loading technology, everything is now safely ready for use. “With the Frisia EI, the 2025 peak season will begin electric and CO₂-neutral,” Pragal added.
Dr Mellwig commented, “Germany wants to be a pioneer in climate-friendly shipping. Especially in the maritime sector, we have an enormous need to catch up with regard to the emission volumes – but also an enormous potential. The new generation of electric propulsion systems is helping to unlock this potential and demonstrates that Germany is capable of shipping. I am very confident that we will see more of this very quickly and that the areas of application will grow along with the ranges.”
“We are working on the sustainable transformation of shipping and investing in an emission-free future,” added Stegmann.
“We are delighted to have been able to help develop and ultimately build the electric catamaran according to Norden-Frisia’s specific requirements from the very beginning,” said Joschka Böddeling, sales manager at Damen Shipyard.
In related news, FPT Industrial has been selected as the preferred powertrain supplier for the new WiderCat 92 hybrid catamaran. Click here to read the full story.
